KELLY’S BABY GIRAFFE IS BORN!

There is much excitement at Giraffe Manor!

Kelly—one of our beloved Rothschild giraffes—gave birth to a baby boy just 12 days ago.

Kelly is the third biggest giraffe at Giraffe Manor and she is hard not to love. But beware of her grace and beauty, because she likes to give the odd head butt should you dare to stand by the side of her head. It’s because of this attitude that she was given the nickname Naughty Kelly.

We can’t be certain, but she most likely became pregnant from Edd, as he is the biggest male out of all the giraffes on site.

15 months later (the gestation period of a giraffe), finally the time had come for Kelly to give birth.

In the late afternoon, she gracefully wondered off into our sheltered yellow fever acacia forest and a few hours later, had given birth to a little baby boy.

Interestingly, giraffe give birth standing up, requiring the newborn to fall just under two metres to the ground. Designed for such an abrupt entry into the world, a newborn calf can stand up and run within an hour of being born.

Each day, Kelly’s baby is getting more and more confident on his feet and is even coming close to the Manor with his mother whilst she gobbles up tasty treats.

Kelly’s baby will suckle his mother’s milk for up to 12 months. But will be able to enjoy solid food (leaves and treats) from about four months.

Rothschild giraffe are one of the most endangered giraffe subspecies, with only a few hundred members in the wild. This makes the birth of Kelly’s baby so special and a great achievement to the team at the Manor and the neighbouring Giraffe Centre.

To read more about the Giraffe Centre and their Rothschild giraffe breeding programme click here.

We look forward to watching this little boy grow up and seeing how his character grows and develops (along with his long legs and neck).

The Giraffe Centre will soon announce the newborn’s name, so watch this space.

Come and meet Kelly’s cute baby at Giraffe Manor before he grows up, and see him roam around our grounds. Contact us to find out more.